Protection: Retribution
by Letyourmindsoar
Summary: Harry Potter never met Ron Weasley. Harry Potter met Draco Malfoy only once. When he sits at the Gryffindor table for the first time, he sits next to Neville Longbottom, who notices more than anyone realizes... HIATUS!


**A/N: **I've always wanted to try one of these... Here I come, Harry Potter fandom!

**Chapter One**

"Abbot, Hannah!"

The timid first year slowly walked up to the stool and sat down. Professor McGonagall placed the Sorting Hat on her head, and it was only a few seconds later that it shouted, "HUFFLEPUFF!" The house beneath the golden and ebony banner cheered at the new addition, and the sorting of the first years proceeded. It was the traditional clapping and cheering until a certain name was called.

"Potter, Harry!" The hall immediately filled with the murmurings of the students and teachers alike. It was the Boy-Who-Lived, _the Harry Potter!_ Every house wanted him in theirs, and they all watched anxiously as the Sorting Hat was placed on his head.

"_Harry Potter, eh?" _Harry's eyes widened in fear; this _thing_ was inside his head! _"Calm down, dear boy. I cannot reveal your secrets, though you have many… Yes, you've had a very hard life indeed. I can only hope the house I place you in will heal you…"_

Harry swallowed nervously. _"Y-you're n-not going to tell a-anyone?"_

"_No, Harry, your secrets are safe with me. Now, let's look at this mind of yours in more detail. Hm… you're quite the difficult case. You're intelligent, but that part of you has been unfortunately suppressed. You're loyal to a fault, but you do not yet know how to trust…Oh, you have ambition and yes, cleverness! Slytherin would be good for you—"_

"_Not Slytherin! Anywhere but Slytherin!"_

"_Not Slytherin, eh? Ah, seems like some of the other first years have influenced you. Well, no matter. There's still Gryffindor…Merlin! You have courage! Yes, Gryffindor would be a good house for you. Good luck, Harry Potter. I hope you will enjoy yourself here at Hogwarts. If you ever feel the need to talk, be sure to find me, dear boy. Yes, well, _better be—GRYFFINDOR!"

The house of lions burst into cheering and applause while the other houses clapped politely. As Harry walked to the long table, he scanned his eyes over his new housemates. To say that they were all excited was an understatement. He even saw two redheads, presumably Ron's twin brothers, dancing and shouting, "We got Potter! We got Potter!" He shivered; was this really the best house for him? Everyone was so _loud…_

He shook his head. Well, he couldn't change anything now. He would just have to deal with it, or rather, try not to have a panic attack. He went to the end of the table and sat down next to Neville; he seemed like a nice boy. He was quiet too. The boy smiled nervously at him, and Harry returned it. They both turned to Dumbledore as he made his welcoming speech.

Everyone clapped as the headmaster sat down, and mountains upon mountains of food appeared on the tables. Harry felt his jaw drop in shock. He had never seen so much food before, and everything looked so delicious. Could this be a dream? He often had dreams about food…

"It's surprising, isn't it?" Harry jumped at the sound of Neville's voice. He mentally scolded himself and tried to calm down. The blonde looked sheepish. "Sorry, didn't mean to startle you."

"It's okay," Harry replied. Neville smiled and began filling up his plate.

Harry copied his movements, but he took significantly less. He wasn't used to eating, and he knew that if he ate too much, his small stomach wouldn't be able to handle it. Once he was sure he had a little bit of everything that looked safe to eat, he began to dig in. The flavors were so rich! He wanted to shovel the food into his mouth, but he continued to eat at a dignified pace. He had manners after all.

Neville turned to him. "That can't be all you're eating, Harry!"

Harry chuckled nervously. "Um… I never had a big appetitie."

The other boy frowned. "I think I'm going to have to change that. You're too scrawny!"

"If you say so."

Even though he said that, Harry knew he was abnormally small. He was easily the shortest first year, and he was underweight. All those years of malnourishment had prevented him from being able to grow. It really wasn't fair, in his opinion. He would probably be below average when it came to size for the rest of his life, but he didn't need to worry about that just yet. Instead, he picked out a small piece of apple pie and began to take small bites.

Harry made small talk with Neville as he waited for the feast to end. He could feel a yawn approaching; it had been a long day. He couldn't wait to go up to the dorms and see where he'd be sleeping. It was bound to be much better than his cupboard, not that he disliked like his cupboard. He was safe in there, where he was always alone…

"Harry, come on, let's go." Harry was pulled out of his thoughts by the quiet voice. Neville reached over to place his hand on the smaller boy's shoulder, but Harry flinched away. Neville's eyes widened marginally, and he pulled his hand back. He stood up. "We don't want to get left behind. The others are already leaving." Harry nodded and followed the other Gryffindor first years.

Neville fell into step beside him and began to contemplate the mystery of Harry Potter. Despite his actions and appearance, he was still a pureblood. Lessons of observation and analysis had been drilled into his head since he was young. From what he had seen of this night, Harry didn't seem to have the best home life, but that couldn't be right. Why would anyone want to mistreat Harry Potter? He was the Boy-Who-Lived! Besides, he was such a nice boy; it was easy to tell that he was not a delinquent. So, what exactly had happened to make him the way he was?

Neville was so absorbed in his thoughts that he didn't realize that they were already inside the Gryffindor common room until Percy Weasley, a fifth year prefect, began explaining the workings of Hogwarts. He only listened with one ear as he thought, _"Well, that's not good. I don't know the password, or even how to get here! I should've paid more attention!"_ He looked over to Harry, who looked to be falling asleep as he listened.

Neville couldn't help but smile at his new friend even as his eyes grew fierce.

_No one hurts a magical child._

**A/N: **So what did you think? Please let me know and review!


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